Share and Follow
Inset: Ashley Boyd (Volusia County Jail). Background: Pet Paradise in Ormond Beach, Florida, where cops found her two young children wandering around (Google Maps).
Cops in Florida arrested a 25-year-old woman after deputies allegedly found her young children wandering around on busy streets without supervision, all while she was taking a nap.
Ashley Brianna Donique Boyd stands accused of two counts of child neglect. According to a probable cause arrest affidavit obtained by Law&Crime, deputies with the Volusia County Sheriff”s Office responded around 4:30 p.m. Monday to Pet Paradise in Ormond Beach after employees saw two young boys running around for “several hours” alone.
The employees offered the boys, ages 4 and 5, some water, which they both purportedly “chugged.” They were also dirty and sweaty, the affidavit said. After the boys couldn’t say where they lived, the employees called police. The boys told deputies they were hungry so they provided them with some snacks and water. When asked where they lived, the boys said they weren’t sure but said it was “far,” according to the affidavit.
Cops went to Boyd’s home, which was nearly a mile away. When Boyd answered the door and deputies inquired about the whereabouts of her children, she allegedly said they “should be inside.” Cops then informed her they could not be inside because they were at Pet Paradise. They also noted there were several high-traffic areas between the home and the business.
Boyd told deputies she was at her boyfriend’s house overnight and she returned home about 7:30 a.m. The boys were eating breakfast with their grandmother who then went to work. She said she put “Lilo & Stitch” on in their room. She fell asleep around 12:30 p.m. and didn’t wake up until deputies arrived at her home.
Inside the bedroom, deputies reportedly found a bed with no sheets on it. The room was dirty with food waste all over and a large, sharp knife was on top of the bed, according to the affidavit.
Deputies found a previous report involving Boyd that said the boys escaped from their home on July 31. In that incident, Boyd’s boys apparently left the home and were discovered at a neighbor’s home some 30 minutes later.
Boyd mentioned the incident to deputies, noting that she was “warned” about the kids escaping again and the “consequences it could have,” per the complaint. She was arrested and taken to the Volusia County Jail from which she has since been released. The kids were turned over to their grandmother.
The suspect is next slated to appear in court on Oct. 21.
Â